LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI Cuts Stake in The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR)

LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI cut its position in shares of The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR - Free Report) by 2.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 206,341 shares of the company's stock after selling 5,130 shares during the period. Kroger makes up 1.6% of LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI's holdings, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI's holdings in Kroger were worth $13,967,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of KR. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Kroger during the fourth quarter valued at about $598,390,000. Steadfast Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Kroger during the fourth quarter valued at about $277,989,000. Junto Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Kroger during the fourth quarter valued at about $264,207,000. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of Kroger during the fourth quarter valued at about $123,829,000. Finally, FMR LLC increased its position in shares of Kroger by 39.1% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,054,824 shares of the company's stock valued at $431,402,000 after acquiring an additional 1,981,259 shares during the last quarter. 80.93% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $70.00 price target on shares of Kroger in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Roth Capital set a $58.00 price objective on shares of Kroger in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on shares of Kroger from $71.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Melius Research upgraded shares of Kroger from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of Kroger from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $68.06.

Kroger Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of Kroger stock traded down $0.06 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $68.17. The company had a trading volume of 7,648,531 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,711,236. The company's 50-day moving average is $69.13 and its two-hundred day moving average is $64.56. The Kroger Co. has a twelve month low of $49.04 and a twelve month high of $73.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.07. The company has a market cap of $45.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.62.

Kroger (NYSE:KR - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The company reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.09 by $0.05. Kroger had a net margin of 1.85% and a return on equity of 27.73%. The business had revenue of $34.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $34.96 billion. Analysts anticipate that The Kroger Co. will post 4.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kroger Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th were issued a $0.32 dividend. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 15th. Kroger's payout ratio is 34.88%.

Insider Activity at Kroger

In related news, SVP Yael Cosset sold 115,149 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.08, for a total value of $7,839,343.92. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 139,338 shares in the company, valued at $9,486,131.04. This represents a 45.25% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Kenneth C. Kimball sold 11,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.37, for a total transaction of $719,070.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 127,106 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,308,919.22. This trade represents a 7.96% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 334,923 shares of company stock worth $22,867,124 in the last 90 days. 0.44% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Kroger Company Profile

The Kroger Co operates as a food and drug retailer in the United States. The company operates combination food and drug stores, multi-department stores, marketplace stores, and price impact warehouses. Its combination food and drug stores offer natural food and organic sections, pharmacies, general merchandise, pet centers, fresh seafood, and organic produce; and multi-department stores provide apparel, home fashion and furnishings, outdoor living, electronics, automotive products, and toys.